Help for Lone Parents through New Deal for Lone Parents

If you are a lone parent bringing up a child and you are receiving Income Support, you could join New Deal for Lone Parents.

This is a Government programme designed specifically to help lone parents who want to work. You can arrange to see your New Deal for Lone Parents Personal Adviser for advice and information.

Once you join the Programme, you will be offered:

• advice on jobs
• advice on training
• advice on benefits
• help with working out how much you need to earn to be better off
• help finding out about childcare
• and help with childcare costs while you attend interviews with
  the personal adviser, job interviews or undertake approved training.

Who is New Deal for Lone Parents for?

New Deal for Lone Parents is for any lone parent on income support with a dependent child.

Lone parents with children of school age are sent letters telling them about the programme and inviting them to meet with a New Deal for Lone Parents Personal Adviser.

If your youngest child is under five, you can choose to join the Programme. Just contact your Benefits Agency office or Jobcentre (in some areas Jobcentre Plus) and ask to contact your nearest New Deal for Lone Parents Personal Adviser.

What help is available for childcare costs?

Once you have joined New Deal for Lone Parents you could get help with childcare costs while you attend interviews or appointments with your New Deal for Lone Parents Personal Adviser, undertake approved training, attend job interviews, or work trials.

To be eligible for the help with childcare costs your training must:

• be approved by a New Deal for Lone Parent Personal Adviser, before you enrol
• be work-related and increase your chances of finding a job – you need
  to have a business case accepted by your adviser to show that you really
  need to undertake training in order to find a job
• be normally up to NVQ/SVQ level 2 or equivalent, or in certain
  circumstances up to NVQ/SVQ level 3
• be no more than one year long.

What kind of childcare can be paid for?

To be eligible, childcare providers taking part in this scheme must be registered or exempt from registration. The following services are eligible:

• Childminder
• out of school scheme
• playscheme
• nursery
• pre-school or playgroup.

If you are not sure if your chosen childcare provider could be eligible, ask your New Deal for Lone Parents Personal Adviser.

How much will I get?

Whilst training you could get a maximum of £94.50 per week for one child, or £140 per week for two or more children to help you pay for childcare. If your childcare costs more than this you will have to pay the difference.

Your adviser will help you find out about childcare while you train or search for a job. If you are training, your adviser will encourage you to find out whether your college could contribute to your childcare costs.

How will the money be paid?

Your New Deal for Lone Parents Personal Adviser will send a form to your childcare provider explaining that the Employment Service will pay the agreed amount and will request confirmation of the childcare arrangements. Then your childcare provider should send the forms back to your New Deal for Lone Parents Personal Adviser, who will arrange for the money to be paid directly to your childcare provider. Payments are usually monthly.

Finding out more about New Deal for Lone Parents

• Contact your local Jobcentre (in some areas Jobcentre Plus) or Social
  Security office to find out more about New Deal for Lone Parents
• visit the New Deal website: www.newdeal.gov.uk
• call the New Deal for Lone Parents Helpline – 0800 868 868
• ask your New Deal for Lone Parents Personal Adviser what help you could get to help you pay for childcare while you train or search for work.

Finding out more about childcare

Ask your local Children's Information Service (CIS) for more information about choosing childcare that will suit your child. The ChildcareLink freephone service will provide
details of your local CIS on 0800 0 96 02 96

Further information on the Government's work-life balance campaign can be found at www.dti.gov.uk/work-lifebalance